press charges

idiom

: to take legal action against someone : to officially accuse someone of a crime
He was caught shoplifting, but the store owner didn't press charges.

Examples of press charges in a Sentence

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The speaker's office said Sexton does not intend to press charges against Johnson. Kirsten Fiscus, Nashville Tennessean, 23 Dec. 2025 Walmart loss prevention took inventory of the recovered merchandise and decided to press charges based on the total amount of the items, which police said was around $120. Christopher Harris, CBS News, 23 Dec. 2025 After an investigation into that and online comments Bunzow made, Kenton County Attorney Stacy Tapke's office declined to press charges against Bunzow. Jolene Almendarez, Cincinnati Enquirer, 29 Nov. 2025 Once again, prosecutors declined to press charges. Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 25 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for press charges

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“Press charges.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/press%20charges. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.

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